These two chapters are the latter part of Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount. He shares in them the wonderful wisdom of God on a variety of topics; among them is Jesus’s instruction to “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.” Herein is the secret to the godly life – to seek Him above all. This represents the difference …
The Value of Godliness
The Epistle of Titus starts: “Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ for the faith of God’s elect and the knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness…” Godliness is a genuine, true relationship with our God. It is so far beyond mere religion. To the world, the person who talks to God is considered devout, …
Who Was Hezekiah
Hezekiah was a king of Judah. He ruled for 30 years between 716 and 686 BCE. He was one of the few kings “who did right in the sight of God.” Hezekiah did several notable things that set him apart from other, lesser kings. The first was to clean the temple thoroughly upon his coronation of all the idols his …
Everyday Faithfulness
Consider these words from the scroll of Proverbs: Proverbs 20:6“Many claim to have unfailing love, but a faithful person who can find?” Relationships of every type are built on trust. Everyone desires to love and be loved. Some exhaust themselves extolling flattery, gifts, or the like; attempting to demonstrate their loving devotion. But, here, God’s Word makes a simple, direct …
The Church of the Spirit
When we talk about Christianity, we must be clear with our terms. By far the majority of Christians throughout the world are cultural Christians. This simply means that Christianity has become engrained within their cultures, and faith is something one does. He wears the label “Christian,” but the label has more to do with his family background and upbringing than …
Original Sin
Original Sin. It’s more correctly called, Adam’s Sin. The Humanist will call it, The Human Condition. Whatever the name, it describes the moral and spiritual degeneracy that afflicts all of humankind. So why is humanity, endowed with such intelligence and ability and created in the very Image of God, so depraved and destructive as a race? Is it a lack …
The First Epistle of Peter
This letter was written to encourage the scattered Christians to maintain hope while suffering. The intended recipients of 1 Peter appear to have been facing significant hardships as a result of social and governmental opposition to their faith in Christ. In this Study of 1 Peter 1 and 2, Peter reminds these believers to stand fast, to endure persecution, to …
Change Offers Growth
One of the hallmarks of weak leaders is the insistence that the followers give unquestioning loyalty and adherence to them, often at the exclusion of all others. Such leaders usually employ subtle intimidation tactics to create fear in their followers. Governments rule by the threat of force, and religions by the threat of rejection. Both create fear and fear is …
Matters of the Heart
Why is the heart important? Well, from a biological point of view, it sustains life. Without the heart pumping the life-giving blood, the body would quickly die. The same is true spiritually. The heart is the well-spring of life. When it is allowed to become infirm with sin, a person’s spiritual life quickly deteriorates. This is why God, our concerned …
The Gospel of Christ
The word gospel literally means “good news” and is used 93 times in the New Testament. In Greek, it’s the word euaggelion, from which we get our English words evangelist, evangel, and evangelical. Specifically, the gospel is the good news of Christ’s salvation to the world: 1.) That God so loved the world that he gave his only son to …